Several Affected as Turbulence Strikes Delta Aircraft into Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew sustained injuries after a Delta Airlines flight from LA to Sydney experienced turbulence Friday morning.

The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier informed. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Local paramedics said they treated five patients, and took three to a medical facility with non-life-threatening injuries that included pain in the back and migraines. The patients' ages spanned from their thirties and seventies.

It is the latest incident of commercial jets encountering severe turbulence, with researchers pointing out that global warming is a significant contributor.

On board were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson said, clarifying that the plane landed "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday.

Paramedics said they got a call just three minutes ahead of the plane touched down, and response teams were standing by on the runway.

Why in-flight bumpiness is getting more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.

Last year, 25 people were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "severe" atmospheric disturbance just two hours into the long-haul flight, and was forced to make an emergency landing.

In 2024, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a harrowing brief five-second of severe turbulence. One passenger passed away and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts lifted out of their seats and crashed back down.

Bumpy air is not uncommon during flights, and while instances of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are approximately five thousand cases of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur globally.

Severe turbulence is defined as when the sudden jolts of a jet going through unstable air apply in excess of a significant G-force on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you did not have on a safety belt.

As a changing climate shifts weather patterns, experts warn that commercial aviation could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and altered air currents in the jet stream level are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.